Strategic Thinking and the New Science: Planning in the Midst of Chaos, Complexity, and Change
- Book Review,
by T. Irene Sanders
From Booklist
A decade ago, James Gleick helped popularize the concept of chaos theory with Chaos: The Making of a New Science (1987). Prior to that, the concept had largely been the province of mathematicians, but Gleick showed broader applications for the idea that systems behave in orderly ways in spite of seemingly random--and chaotic--individual events. And, indeed, investors, meteorologists, economists, astronomers, and biologists have all incorporated chaos theory into the models they construct. Others have even seen applications for management theory, and Margaret Wheatley's Leadership and the New Science (1992) explored organizational behavior from the point of view of chaos. Now Sanders, a consultant who has worked with corporations, not-for-profit organizations, and even congressional committees, has developed a new model of strategic thinking, based on chaos and complexity, that breaks down the process into two components: insight about the present and foresight about the future. Both of these require "visual thinking," and she has developed a tool called "FutureScape" that facilitates such thinking. Here she explains her model and demonstrates the application of her method. David Rouse
Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Harvard Business School, Author of Rosabeth Moss Kanter on the Frontiers Of Management
This useful book is a welcome reminder that forecasting is not foresight, and that the best-laid plans mean little without understanding the web of relationships in which they must be enacted.
Edward N. Lorenz, Professor Of Meteorology, Massachusetts Institute Of Technology
An eye-opening account of how an awareness of chaos can enter practical decision making.
Ron J. Anderson, M.D., President and CEO, Parkland Health & Hospital System
This book should be in the toolbox of all the leaders of complex health care organizations. Sanders' application of chaos theory will be helpful to leaders of institutions that must work in communities where change is the only constant and where continuous adaptation, anticipation, and visualization of unseen patterns are necessary prerequisites for effective leadership and stewardship.
Sam Nunn, Partner, King & Spalding, former U.S. Senator
Having worked with and greatly admired Irene Sanders, I am intrigued by her new model for strategic thinking. She has taken an original approach to an ongoing challenge: How to plan for the future in a world that is changing rapidly and more interconnected than ever before.
Review
Ron J. Anderson, M.D. President and CEO, Parkland Health & Hospital System This book should be in the toolbox of all the leaders of complex health care organizations. Sanders' application of chaos theory will be helpful to leaders of institutions that must work in communities where change is the only constant and where continuous adaptation, anticipation, and visualization of unseen patterns are necessary prerequisites for effective leadership and stewardship.
Book Description
The future is happening today, and the most successful organizations will be those that understand the dynamics of the "big picture" in which their decisions are being made. This book describes how to understand and influence that picture. Irene Sanders pioneered the application of chaos theory and complexity to strategic thinking -- the most essential skill in today's fast-paced business environment. Now, in this straightforward, easy-to-read book, she shows how the most up-to-date strategic thinking is done, and how you can begin using it in your enterprise. Sanders' original and practical approach moves far beyond traditional forecasting, futuring and scenario-building. The new science of chaos and complexity has shown scientists and business professionals alike the importance of looking at the world as a whole system, rather than as a collection of deterministic principles. Consequently, the human mind -- through the integration of intuition and intellect -- is now recognized as the only information processor capable of understanding the level of complexity in today's global business environment. By engaging the mind's eye through the use of visual thinking, Sanders shows you how to develop insight about the present and foresight about the future, thereby allowing you to see and influence the future as it is emerging. The new planning paradigm presented in Strategic Thinking and the New Science is nothing less than a transformation of the science of business. For the first time in history, we have the knowledge, tools and techniques to develop visual thinking as the essential insight/foresight skill of the future. In addition to breakthroughs neuroscientists have made about brain-mind interactions, artists and psychologists are revealing the role of imagery in the creative process. And now, the new field of scientific visualization brings all of this information together with computer graphics to demonstrate how visual images can be used to engage our imaginations, enhance learning -- and stimulate our deeper levels of awareness. In this groundbreaking book, Sanders is the first to define the new model of strategic thinking -- a model that is bound to revolutionize organizations of all types as they begin to see and influence their futures -- today.
About the Author
T. Irene Sanders is principal of Sanders & Company, a consulting firm dedicated to helping organizations see, understand and influence the dynamics of the real world context in which their decisions are being made. She has worked with a wide range of Fortune 500 companies, international groups and nonprofit organizations, and she frequently provides strategic thinking and planning services to individual members and committees of the United States Congress. She lives in Evergreen, Colorado.
Buy from Amazon
Compare Prices
|
|
Home
