Margaret Wheatley in Management Today

“Interconnected systems are always this sensitive. Activities occurring in one part of the system always affect many other parts of the system. The nature of the global business environment guarantees that no matter how hard we work to create a stable and healthy organisation, our organisation will continue to experience dramatic changes far beyond our control.”

She says that in an era of increasing uncertainty, new organisational dynamics appear and old ones intensify at all levels of the organisation and it is important to notice how these new dynamics affect employees, leaders, and core-operating functions. Her examples are:

Employee behaviours: Uncertainty leads to increased fear. As fear levels rise, it is normal for people to focus on personal security and safety. We tend to withdraw, become more self-serving, and more defensive. We focus on smaller and smaller details, those things we can control.

Pressure on leaders: Because of increased fear, many people turn to leaders with unreasonable demands. We want someone to rescue us, to save us, to provide answers, to give us firm ground or strong life rafts. But not even the strongest of leaders can deliver on the promise of stability and security.

Core functions: It wasn’t long ago that companies engaged in five-year strategic planning. Those sweet, slow days seem very distant now. Many of the primary functions of business, and of human resources-planning, forecasting, budgeting, staffing, individual development plans – only worked because we could bring the future into focus, because the future felt within our control. When people know they can rely on each other, when there is a true sense of community, it is amazing how well people perform.

New organisational capabilities: In order to counter the negative organisational dynamics stimulated by stress and uncertainty, we must give full attention to the quality of our relationships. Nothing else works, no new tools or technical applications, no redesigned organisational chart. The solution is each other. If we can rely on one another, we can cope with almost anything. Without each other, we retreat into fear.

There is one core principle for developing these relationships. People must be engaged in meaningful work together if they are to transcend individual concerns and develop new capacities. Here are several ways to put this principle into practices –

Nourish a clear organisational identity: As confusion and fear swirls about the organisation, people find stability and security in purpose, not in plans. When chaos wipes the ground from beneath us, the organisation’s identity gives us some place to stand.

Focus people on the bigger picture: People who are stressed lose the ability to recognise patterns, to see the bigger picture. And as people become overloaded and overwhelmed with their tasks, they have no time or interest to look beyond the demands of the moment.

Demand honest, forthright communication: In a crisis, the continuous flow of information gives people the capacity to respond intelligently as they seek to rescue or save people and property. People deal far better with uncertainty and stress when they know what’s going on.

Prepare for the unknown: The US military has invested large sums of money in the development and use of complex simulations that prepare troops for different battle scenarios. Yet it is surprising how few companies engage in any type of simulation or scenario work.

Keep meaning at the forefront: Often in organisations we forget that meaning is the most powerful motivator of human behavior. People gain energy and resolve if they understand how their work contributes to something beyond themselves.