Tag Archives: Systems

Nested Structures

Posted on July 5, 2022 by julianstodd

Many things stack up: structures, systems, even knowledge and understanding. Perhaps identity itself. Take our social systems: we tend to describe that we know ‘ourself’ (the basic unit of a social system, i guess), and from there we describe one … Continue reading →

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Bending or Breaking

Posted on February 21, 2022 by julianstodd

The storms this week have reminded me of a conversation many years ago, as i was stood in a Big Top tend during a gale. The central pole was bending and creaking, and i was quite concerned about the danger, … Continue reading →

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Systems Build Statues

Posted on April 20, 2021 by julianstodd

There are rewards, within many Organisational systems, for building Statues: monumental and megalithic structures. Procuring new systems, creating new products or services, or stripping out cost and complexity. But there are relatively fewer rewards for self reflection after the event: … Continue reading →

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Leadership Reflections from Apollo at 50: Failure, Complexity, and Control

Posted on July 24, 2019 by julianstodd

This post is #WorkingOutLoud, sharing a draft chapter from my upcoming Social Age Guidebook on ‘Apollo: Leadership Reflections from the Space Race’. It’s not proofed or finalised yet, so please treat it kindly. “Failure is not an option” is the … Continue reading →

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Loops of Leadership

Posted on January 8, 2019 by julianstodd

Engineers describe two types of system: ‘open’ and ‘closed’ loops. In an open loop system, there are inputs, and outputs, but no feedback. The systems presses on regardless. In a closed loop system, part of the output is fed back, … Continue reading →

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Apollo

Posted on November 6, 2018 by julianstodd

The Saturn 5 rocket, the one that lofted Armstrong, Collins, and Aldrin, into space and set them on the path to the moon, had more than three million parts to it. It’s sometimes reckoned to be the most complex machine … Continue reading →

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Intertwined Systems

Posted on November 27, 2017 by julianstodd

There’s an illusion of a woodcut that you may have seen: look at it, and you see the silhouette of an old women, but then, the image shifts, and you see a young woman’s face. Concentrate hard, and it shifts … Continue reading →

Posted in Community, Complexity, Concepts, Control | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Complex Collaboration

Posted on March 29, 2017 by julianstodd

One of the core themes around the Socially Dynamic Organisation is that it deeply connected: not simply through formal hierarchy, but through webs of trust, reputation, respect, and fairness. These bonds sit primarily within the social system, hence the journey … Continue reading →

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Blowing In The Wind

Posted on January 31, 2017 by julianstodd

Trees move in the wind: they bend, because the alternative is to break. I’m feeling deeply curious about systems at the moment: systems of power, systems of communication, formal and social systems, and so on. Particularly in how they are … Continue reading →

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Elasticity: Moving But Rooted

Posted on June 8, 2016 by julianstodd

There’s an important phenomena called elasticity that we need to understand as it’s an insidious energy of organisational change. Elasticity is where we bend and sway in the breeze, giving an illusion of movement whilst always being rooted firmly in … Continue reading →

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