Analysis: creating a trusting workplace environment is essential when we're dealing with increasing levels of complexity and uncertainty
By Sean O'Neill, Sarah Kieran, University of Limerick and Christine Cross, Edinburgh Napier University
Uncertainty is an ever present reality in today's business world. Innovation is no longer merely a competitive advantage, but a necessity for survival. Technological advancements and economic and political fluctuations can leave organisations operating in unpredictable environments. While forward planning models can be extremely useful to aid thinking, there is always the unforeseen.
The Covid pandemic made it clear that an organisation's ability to navigate change and uncertainty is now a necessity. Leaders often feel stuck as they face growing challenges in their role. This is understandable when our world is becoming increasingly complex. Although leaders may be conditioned to come up with answers, embracing the discomfort of not knowing can also be helpful. This can involve moving from a knowing to a learning mindset.
But it seems that we often reach for complete knowledge of a situation or outcome before proceeding. This is understandable where there are high risks involved. Accepting uncertainty involves some element of letting go of perfection and resisting the urge to oversimplify and reach quick conclusions. While many high achievers have a bias towards action, this should be balanced with taking enough time to really understand the problem.
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From RTÉ Radio 1's Drivetime, Associate Professor of Psychology at UCD Dr Paul D'Alton on how to live in an age of global, local and environmental uncertainty
When addressing complex problems, we can only obtain the feedback we need by taking action. According to organisational change theorist Karl Weick, we only know what we are going to do once we have done it. While uncertainty can create fear or anxiety among leadership, it also creates opportunities for sensemaking.
Part of the reason for our reluctance to do this comes from numbers-driven models of management are viewed as the only game in town. Could this lead to an approach where too much time is spent on research and planning and not enough time on implementation?
By choosing certain safe areas where uncertainty could be embraced, individuals and teams are compelled to start exploring new possibilities and decisions become more inclusive, encouraging further autonomy in the process. This can lead organisations to become more agile.
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From RTÉ Radio 1's The Business, Tracy Gunn from Platform 55 on the unique hurdles faced when stepping into leadership roles
However, there are challenges to this. There must be a willingness by business leaders to step outside of their comfort zone and to lead by example. This means fostering a culture that empowers employees with support and guidance, but also provides some level of freedom to take calculated risks.
Sensemaking will be paramount here as this helps to build trust and alignment. Accepting uncertainty and agile approaches requires a mechanism for fast feedback and adaptability so the organisation can iterate. This involves good communication which also allows organisations to harness the collective intelligence of the workforce leading to a situation where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
Technology can be a great help here. In this age of hybrid working, it allows for fast communication over geographical distances between teams. Analytics and predictive modelling can further help organisations to anticipate trends and opportunities. But technology can also help to build a more narrative conversation between different elements of the organisation and to label and make sense of such qualitative information. This can allow for greater creativity too and is essential for making sense of complex issues.
An excellent framework for understanding complexity is the Cynefin model. This divides situations into five categories which are simple, complicated, complex, chaotic and disordered. In the simple domain the steps will be clear, as you would find in a recipe book. The complicated domain may be a bit more involved as there are more parts to consider, but there is generally an expert who can help.
The complex domain involves many interconnected factors. This is seen in problems such as climate change, where changes in one area can have unforeseen consequences in another. The best approach here involves a holistic approach to understanding the system and adapting to changes. In the chaotic domain, decisions should be made rapidly to stabilize the situation. However, in the disordered domain it may be unclear which of the above domains the problems fits into to start with. To move forward here involves information gathering, analysis, and judgement.
Sometimes the only way to make sense of the world is to act in it. Too much planning in advance and analysis paralysis can prevent this. Accepting a level of uncertainty before we act is essential. Implicit in this is the idea that knowledge is not merely determined in advance of our experiences or waiting to be discovered, but is invented as we go along.
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From RTÉ Radio 1, Dr. Jonathan Egan from NUI Galway on how to deal with the psychology of uncertainty
There is no need to predict the future as long as we are moving in the right direction. Markets and organisations are part of an open system where control is limited and both are co-evolving, so there are limits to what we can foresee.
When dealing with increasing levels of complexity in the workplace, there is a need to support emergent practices. This involves creating a trusting environment where sensemaking, collaboration, labelling and creative tension are encouraged. In this way, strategy can be seen as a struggle to create order out of complexity.
In the workplace of today, where problems may be less visible and control is less straightforward due to virtual working, this is more imperative than ever. For this reason, understanding where uncertainty can be embraced, can help reduce roadblocks when implementing change.
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Sean O'Neill is a PhD student in the Kemmy School of Business at the University of Limerick. Dr. Sarah Kieran is Assistant Dean, Academy and Lecturer in the Department of Work and Employment Studies in the Kemmy School of Business at the University of Limerick. Prof Christine Cross is Professor of Human Resource Management and Dean of the Business School at Edinburgh Napier University.
The views expressed here are those of the author and do not represent or reflect the views of RTÉ
