Dialogic Design for the Intelligent Enterprise

Collaborative strategy, process, and action

Peter H. Jones, PhD

Dialogic Design International, LLC

Institute for 21st Century Agoras

INCOSE 2007 Symposium

The Intelligent Enterprise

James Brian Quinn (1992, 2002):

“The self-sufficient enterprise is becoming anachronistic. Each organization is part of a matrix of merging and evolving ideas and opportunities. … Leading companies focus less on positioning and more on patterns of people and institutions they work with - or against.”

Structured Dialogic Design

Evolution of Interactive Management

Purposes :

- Strategic Planning / Consensus Scenarios

- Managing Uncertainty

- Mapping Enterprise Transformation

- Democratic resolution of wicked problems

- Way of coordinating enterprise intelligence

Transformation = attaining goals of intelligent enterprise

Structured Dialogic Design = Way of transforming for collective intelligence

Proposition: Common methods of transformation ill-suited to the IE goal, instrumentalism does not lead to IE

Why? It doesn’t work for strategy …

“Organizations have been optimized for mediocrity, or ruin.”

Michael Raynor, The Strategy Paradox

• Enterprise transformation, as a long-term corporate strategy, is inherently uncertain.

• Decision makers aiming for strategic certainty are betting the farm on One Plan.

• Purpose of (any) strategy is to design options for unforeseeable uncertainties.

Strategic Paradox

Goal of strategy: “Competitive inimitability”

- Creating non-copyable processes for innovation

Org intelligence requires culture of:- Distributed knowledge & decisions - Self-organizing teams- Processes optimized by practitioners

Competitive strategy requires commitment

- How to resolve? What do you align to?

Transformation as Strategic Change to IE

Transformation = Organizational strategy

Two schools : Emergent and Designed

Drivers for Transformation:– Value deficiencies (Rouse)– Purpose / Strategic design– Profitability / survival

• “Self-organizing emergence” unsuitable for complex or large-scale enterprises

• IE “by design” may be overdetermined

Requisite Uncertainty

Commitment

Uncertainty10 yrs:

Strategic Transformation

Board

Corporate 5-10 yrs:

Corporate Renewal

Operating Division

5 yrs:

Operational Effectiveness

Function 1Q – 1 yr.

Process Redesign

Strategic Vision

(Collins “Good to Great”)

Strategic Commitment

(Porter: Cost leadership or product differentiation)

10 yrs:

Strategic Transformation

Board

Corporate 5-10 yrs:

Corporate Renewal

Operating Division

5 yrs:

Operational Effectiveness

Function 1Q – 1 yr.

Process redesign

Commitment

Uncertainty

Organizational Architecture

Transformation

Process Reengineering

Socialization

Levels of Transformation

Why Dialogic Design?Transformation risks are profound

– Resources, Processes, Values change (Christensen)– Failures of Communication & Collaboration (Kotter)– Most managers do not consider uncertainties

Top-down planning analytical & past-based – Collaboration exposes risks & generates options– Knowing risks & options = flexible strategy

A complex, interconnected problem, multi-dimensional– Traditional methods/practices insufficient

Dialogue is generative, progressive– Collaboration = resiliency & comprehensive design

Intelligent Enterprise Applications

SDD gives organizations tools for democratic consensus across (very) disparate stakeholders

In a collective planning situation, SDD:– Scales to large-group decision making– Progressive migration of decisions over time– Consensus among very disparate stakeholders– Elicits root causes AND interconnections– Radically democratic process – No one “advantaged”

Model of Structured Dialogue1. Discovery: Scope inquiry, range of participation

2. Definition: Divergent Dialogue : Triggering QuestionOpen-ended responses (NGT method)Clarification of factors

Convergent Dialogue :Clustering responsesVoting paired relationships (ISM method)

3. Design Phase

4. Action Planning dialogue

Definition

Stakeholders first dialogue What we must consider in our strategic game plan.

Discovery - Initial research into the factors of inquiry.

Action PlanningConsensus on near * mid-term actions for all stakeholders.

Root cause mapConsensus options

DesignIdealized array of design solutions in response to Definition issues. Strategic options that offer direction & reduce uncertainty.

Guiding driver(s)Guiding

Requirement(s)

Priority drivers

Strategic goal

Influenced Requirement(s)

InfluencedRequirement

Transformative vision

PriorityRequirement

Priority drivers

Cluster markets / customers

Understanding market

Deep driver(s)A

B

C

Factors in influence map

Analyzing deep drivers:E.g. understanding customers

Influence map of Market priorities & relationships

Iterative dialogue for each deep driver

Dialogic Design Co-Laboratory

 

Dialogue Co-Laboratory

Largely co-located, onsite15-30+ participantsMixed media & real-time display

Cogniscope IIISM method software

Facilitator-managed

Webscope

Usually mixed locationsOnline wiki + teleconferenceMixed media & real-time display

Screen shareTeleconferenceWiki support

Strategic Architecture Influence Map - 9 levels deep

- 3 Cycles, No outliers, deeply interconnected

Layered Architecture

Clarify / Build brandidentity

Prepare a simple value package

Mount coordinated/online marketing

campaign

Clear model of product funnel & staged offerings

Introduce complementary services in marketing plan

IV

V

VI

VII

Purposes & Uses of Dialogic Design

Resolve issues among diverse stakeholders

Democratic large-group decision making

Policy design & decision making

Complex (wicked) problem solving

Strategic planning & effective priority setting

Portfolio & business asset allocation

Problem identification & root cause analysis

Exemplary SDD Applications• Peace dialogue between Greek and Turkish Cypriots (2006-2007)

• National Leadership Agenda for pharmaceutical safety for the National Patient Safety Foundation (NPSF) and AMA. (1999).

• Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) Initiative: 48 stakeholders & 10 observers from 38 organizations defining 85 barriers to improving CKD outcomes, resulting in action plan. (2003).

• Co-Laboratory of Democracy for transnational indigenous leaders dialogue in context of globalization: 40 Indigenous leaders from Americas and New Zealand & several experts. (2004).

• Food and Drug Administration, Good Practices Review dialogues(1995-1999)

• Schering-Plough Drug Development Action Planning (1992-1994).

• Alternative Energy Future Planning for Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (2000-2001).

Conclusions

Enterprise transformation is both competitive & organizational strategy

• Must resolve Strategy Paradox.

Intelligent enterprises require planning for transformation.

• Must resolve the paradox of planning them.

Dialogic design has tested & offers method of collective planning & strategic design for uncertainty

References & Sites

Dialogic Design International: dialogicdesignllc.com

Institute for Global Agoras: globalagoras.org

Dialogue websites:

The Blogora: blogora.net Dialogue community support wiki

Webscope Wiki: Dialogic design templates

Some current projects:

Michigan Dept. of Education: Universal Design for Learning

Cyprus Reunification

National Invasive Species Council (USDA)

How People Harness their Collective Wisdom & Power to Construct the Future

in Co-Laboratories of Democracy

Alexander N. Christakis /  Information Age /  2006

  Harnessingcollectivewisdom.com