Thinking out loud…
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On being a systems entrepreneur
How do we move forward in an uncertain world? A systems entrepreneur recognises that whatever their interests and various areas of expertise, they are moving forward into an unknown world.… Read more
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On the unexpected benefits of taking small actions
It’s dark, cold and the summer seems far from a January perspective. It’s much easier to draw the curtains, pour a glass, open a book and relax at home at… Read more
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On the opportunities of ‘Explore and Experiment’
In my last post I explored an alternative to the standard approach to problem-solving, the linear and reductionist approach I termed ‘Decide and Deliver’. It involves following a process that… Read more
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On the shortcomings of ‘Decide and deliver’
When it comes to making things happen the model I was implicitly taught in local government required a committee report for decisions above a certain scale; even those that didn’t… Read more
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On innovation programming in practice
‘It is simply not enough to artfully critique the now’, was a phrase of my former Chief Exec, Matthew Taylor that has lodged long in my mind. Criticism is cheap,… Read more
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On innovation programming in theory
In my previous article I shared some of the assumptions embedded in our legacy approaches to creating social change, grounded as they are in increasingly outdated ideals of delivery, scale,… Read more
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On the challenges with programming to fix things
Until recently I didn’t appreciate why the innovation programmes my team runs in communities in South Sudan and Guatemala were quite so different from the norm in the humanitarian sector,… Read more
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On things evolving as they should
It’s always been a fascination to me that even the simplest action can have unknowable and unpredictable consequences, as the ripples from an event eventually reach shores invisible to the… Read more
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On Pilgrims and Explorers
In a documentary I recently watched, a scientist, incidentally working at the time with Stephen Hawking and others inquiring into the nature of black holes, said something I found interesting.… Read more
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On replacing job descriptions with problem descriptions
It is one thing when you can clearly specify in detail the requirements you have for a new employee, generally captured in a Job Description. It’s quite another challenge to… Read more
Categories:
- Autobiographical + Spiritual (22)
- Behaviour + Incentives (25)
- Change + Innovation (69)
- Collaboration + Teams (31)
- Geography+Community (61)
- Governance + Decisions (37)
- Outcomes + Evaluation (33)
- Performance + Productivity (31)
- Strategy + Foresight (45)
- Systems + Complexity (60)
Ian Burbidge. 