the new founding principles of managerial legitimacy

By Olivier ZaraConsultant in management and social media

Collective IntelligenceAgility, Innovation and Engagement Booster

Collective Intelligence = Simple?

Lean Management Purposes

Performance

Productivity

Optimization

A “Must Have” for reducing waste!

Collective Intelligence Purposes

Engagement

Innovation

Agility

Shifting from “Nice to Have” to “Must Have”

It’s the sum ofsituational intelligence

plus knowledge.

What is Collective Intelligence in a Company?

1. Situational intelligence means a good understanding of the context and the stakes. Objective: 1 + 1 = 3

2. It is not an IQ equation in the form of 1 idiot + 1 idiot = 0 which is part of the leaders’ beliefs

In a company:Collective Intelligence = ∑ of the situational intelligence of the employees

What is Collective Intelligence in a Company?

Complicated & Complex?

A plane, a satellite…It is complicated!


But with time and expertise…


A company, the brain… they are complex!


Holistic andsystemic approach…

Performance development / Strategies

Complex technical problem / Risk management / Workplace security

Governance / Working methods

Innovation

Complexity = a Blank Page!

What is your blank page currently?

Complexity = 24 Dimensions!

What dimensions impact your blank page?

Process

Org

KM

Comm

Legal

Marketing

BrandingIT

Trades

Unions

FIN

Sales

Culture

Complexity = Interactions!

What are the interactions between your dimensions?


Complicated = I know with certainty (knowledge, expertise, and experience)

Complexity = I do not know with certainty: I have beliefs, I have convictions, I have intuition (unpredictability and uncertainty)

If you are 100% sure you’ve made THE right decision, it’s because your situation is just complicated.

Managing a team is knowing……that you know or that you do not!

Situation Example

AI do not know with certainty AND no one in the group knows

either

Must we move?(social & organizational

impact - Complex)

B I know with certainty, BUT I need the group’s support

When and how must we move? (social & organizationalimpact - complicated)

C I know with certainty AND I do not need the group’s support

Which company will take care of the move? (no or little social

& organizational impact - simple)

Managing a team is knowing……that you know or that you do not!

Situation Best Management Mode

A Complex Collective Intelligence Management

B Complicated Participative or Collaborative Team Management

C Simple Individual Management in delegating mode

Collective Intelligence = Collective

Decision? Collective Intelligence = Collective Reflection. Decisions are made under the principle of

subsidiarity. If authority is delegated individually, so is

decision making. When facing complexity (unpredictability), no

one knows with certainty what to do. You have to follow your intuition, not the consensus (which can only make sense in the complicated).

Collective Intelligence = Collective

Reflection Collective Intelligence = Collective reflection Definition of “to reflect”: to ask oneself questions

and find answers. Reflecting together thus means asking questions

together and finding answers together. A collective reflection meeting begins with 50 to 100

questions before looking for answers. When was the last time your team had a meeting

that began with 50 to 100 questions?

Of course we discuss, but do we reflect?

Collective Reflection OR Collective

Discussion?Discussing = sharing ideas… and sometimes wanting to impose them (polemics, ego-system) = participative management

Reflecting = asking yourself questions and then co-constructing answers with others, especially through roundtable technique (eco-system) = collective intelligence management.

We always discuss a little when we reflect. But we do not always reflect when we discuss.

Creating more Agility Collective intelligence is a tool for

managing complexity …inappropriate for managing complicated situations

It secures the decision-making process by providing:

A global vision A measure of the interactions An expanded choice of decisions

Paradoxical ManagementThe new keys of agility in an uncertain world

It is a Manager’s Story…Produce & Sell

Paradoxical Manager

ReflectionBox

Axio

Synergy4

Produce & Sell

1. Being able to identify the 4 blank pages to handle them with the right level of logic (Paradoxical manager)

4. Being able to facilitate collective reflection meetings (Synergy4)

2. Being able to handle the important before it becomes urgent (Reflection box)

3. Being able to decide alone, but enlightened by collective intelligence (AXIO)

THE ANCIENT WORLD 1.0

Is the World Black and White?

PowerSanctionRewardPyramid

SilosControl

HierarchyDisciplineObjectivesEvaluation

Orders

THE NEW WORLD 2.0

Manager-coachCooperationFacilitatorCommunityTransversal

Co-llaborationCo-creation

Co-constructionCollective

intelligenceInnovation

THE « REAL »NEW WORLD?

The Ancient World

+The New World

It is a Manager’s Story…Produce & Sell

Paradoxical Manager

Produce & Sell

Like Before! Differently… Like

Before!

The “real” new world, is…“like before” AND

“differently”!

We discovered more muscles meant more

strength!

A Long Time Ago…

We discovered that more brains means more

strength!

More Recently…

The magical wordsof management? You must associate your

employees in the decision-making process

You must be participative, collaborative

You must co-constructBut nobody explains tomanagers how to do it!

WHAT is it about?Connecting intelligence and knowledge

HOW to connect intelligence?One simple question: “What do you think?”

WHY connect intelligence?1. Because associating brains means strength.2. Because when managing collective

intelligence, I’m not losing my authority, my credibility

The Situation…HOW to connect intelligence?Very few methods… management based on intuition… bar room philosophizing? “What do you think?” is not enough!

WITHOUT losing my authority as a managerNobody tells managers why and how they retain their authority

A new way to look at your organization…

Order & Institution

Logic

Authority, discipline, territory, hierarchyDriving Force

Chaos & PeopleLogic

Meaning, knowledge, transversality, freedomAgility Force

Your Organization is Paradoxical

…to Chaos-Agility

From Chaos-Disorder…

Chaos

Disorder

Agility

Chaos exists only in the universe. In a company, there is only Chaos-Disorder or Chaos-Agility!

The Organizational Paradox?

Best system for implementing a decision

Worst system for making a decision

Order & Institution

AND

Order & Institution

Skills

Order Individual and Team ManagementCommand and control

Chaos Collective Intelligence ManagementCo-construct

Your Organization is Paradoxical

WHEN do you Need to Change your Management Mode ?

4 complex situations which require moving from command and control to collective intelligence

management

COMPLEX TECHNICAL PROBLEM

GOVERNANCE

INNOVATION

MAJORDECISION

S

To Be or not to Be…Being a paradoxical manager

Produce & Sell

Daily, 90% of the time, give objectives, control but…

Being Agile

…facing a blank page, 10% of the time, mobilizing collective intelligence.

The most important question for the manager / leader:Is the situation “complicated” or “complex”?

Produce & Sell

Complicated: time and expertiseArea of experts in the field of

production, sales and operations

Being Agile

Complex: holistic and systemicArea of collective intelligence

within the 4 blank pages

Being a Paradoxical Manager…

…but Chaos logic is seen as a VIRUS which will destroyOrder logic!

Order

Chaos

Fake participation? Deciding alone first, then organizing a participatory meeting!

The New Founding Principlesof Managerial Legitimacy

Produce & sell I decide (one responsible)

Being agile We reflect (many people)

Why Does a Manager Keep his Legitimacy?

A manager is not “indebted” for the help he receives.

He is “responsible” for the decision he makes.

The New Founding Principles of Managerial Legitimacy

OrderAbility to exercise greater

individual reflection

Expertise (I know with certainty)Charisma / Status

Management(Collective discussion)

AND

ChaosAbility to generate greater

collective reflexion

Blank Pages(I do not know with certainty)

Open-mindednessManagement

(Collective reflection)

In an Uncertain, Unpredictable World…


individual reflection AND


collective reflection

Prejudice: If I base a part of my legitimacy on Chaos, I will lose my legitimacy in Order.

Reality: If you do not base a part of your legitimacy on Chaos, you will lose your legitimacy in Order.

Your Legitimacy Might not be where you Think it is!


individual reflection AND


collective reflection

Top managers, project or innovation managers: you manage a lot of blank pages; your legitimacy is primarily

based on…

First-line or middle managers: you manage a few blank pages;

your legitimacy is primarily based on…

Why are 91% of Employees Disengaged?

Ability to exercise greater individual

reflection

Ability to generate greater collective

reflection

Top managers 100% 0%

Middle managers, project and innovation

managers100% 0%

First-line managers 100% 0%

Connecting Charismatic Leadership with Shared Leadership!


reflection


reflection

Top managers Charismatic Leadership

The one who knows, the specialist

Shared Leadership

The one who does not know, the one

who mobilizes collective

intelligence, the non-expert


managers

First-line managers

How to Get Rid of…Order, Counter-order… Disorder?


reflectionCharismatic Leadership


reflectionShared Leadership

Top managers 10% 90%


managers50% 50%

First-line managers 90% 10%

From Design to ExecutionWhen complexity poisons the whole organization!

When Execution Becomes a Nightmare… When the complex major decisions have a poor

design (collective discussion, greater individual reflection), the implementation decisions (supposed to be complicated) become complex too!

Complexity is difficult to manage for the top managers and for the first-line and middle managers, complexity sometimes becomes inextricable, for lack of means, time, power and methods.

Consequence: a vicious spiral of meetings (3 out of 5 days per week), to fit squares into round holes.

Managing Complexity at the Most Relevant Level of the Organization

4h

40h

Top managers, project managersBlank pages, Reflection Box, AXIO and Synergy4

= Ability to manage complexity

ORMiddle – First-line managers

Deluge of emails, inflation of meetingsPressure, stress, suffering at work= Ability to disengage employees

Taking Time for Reflection to Save Time in Execution!

Where would you like to manage complexity?In major decisions or in the execution?

4h 40hOR

Produce & Sell

Acting before reflecting

Being agile

Reflecting before acting

At the End, a Simple Choice…

YOUR choice? Do you want to let complexity infect the Order? Then the complicated will

become complex, and even inextricable. Do you want to deal with a blank page LIKE BEFORE or

DIFFERENTLY?

OR40h

4h

Produce & sell

Suffering at work91% disengaged employees

Inflation of emails & meetings

Being agile Agility Engagement Innovation

One Choice = Consequences…

OR

The Reasons for your Success are not the Ones you Would Think!

Your ten years of success as a first-line manager are related to the nature of your functions, not to the methods you used at this time.

New functions = new methods!

Conclusion…

« If I had an hour to solve a problem, I would spend the first 55 minutes determining the proper question to ask, for once I know the proper question, I could solve the problem in less than five minutes. » Albert Einstein

« It taught me that the tough thing is figuring out what questions to ask, but that once you do that, the rest is really easy. » Elon Musk

« A problem without a solution is a poorly presented problem. » Albert Einstein

Why Ask Questions?

Asking the right question is often giving the answer!

Solutions or Questions?

Solutions

Questions

In the complicated, you can go directly to the solutions, without asking yourself questions.In the complex, with the same behavior, you run straight into a wall.

When You Face a Complex Problem…

I do not know – They do not knowWhy ask help from those whodo not know any better than I?

Completely absurd?

Who Should be Put around the Table?

In the complicated, you have to put those who do know around the table.In the complex, you have to do the exact opposite: put those who do not know around the table.

In Summary…

Ask 50-100 questions

before looking for solutions

The more people there are who do

not know, the more you

increase your chances of knowing

Success = Doing the opposite of what you would naturally do!

“The world we have created is the result of our level of reflection, but the problems it generates cannot be resolved at the same level”

Albert Einstein

Albert Einstein could have said:“We cannot resolve the problems generated by Order logic at that same level. We must resolve them at the level of Chaos logic”

1. “When we are sure we are right, we need not discuss it with those who are wrong.” Georges Wolinski

2. “Remember, amateurs built the ark. Professionals built the Titanic.” Winston Churchill

3. “Genius is less about the art of finding ideas and more about recognizing good ones.” Paul Valéry

4. “Since I believe I do not know, I know more than those who believe they know!” Ozon Liniorence

What is Your Favorite Quote?

Books, upcoming conferences:www.axiopole.com

Olivier Zara

the new founding principles of managerial legitimacy

Leadership & Management