Cognitive diversity: multiple streams join in a matrix to align.

Cognitive Diversity and Collective Intelligence

Monika WolffNo Comments

How Do Different Ways of Thinking Become Collective Intelligence? Cognitive diversity in organisations is widely regarded as a valuable resource. Different experiences, areas of expertise and ways of perceiving the world are expected to reveal blind spots, generate new ideas and enable better decisions. Yet when people think differently, collective intelligence does not arise automatically. Sometimes, the opposite happens. Conversations become more laborious, terminology is interpreted differently and objections are mistaken for resistance. People talk past one another even though they are discussing the same problem. In the end, it is not necessarily the most robust assessment that prevails, but the one that sounds most familiar or is presented by… Read More

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Innovation, a social process: how organisations recognise observations, connect knowledge, evaluate ideas and turn them into practical change.

Innovation as a Social Process

Monika WolffNo Comments

Innovation – a Social Process: Turning Observations into Effective Innovation One person notices that customers regularly use a process differently from the way it was designed. Another recognises that several apparently unrelated errors have the same underlying cause. Someone connects two fields of knowledge and identifies a possibility that no one has previously considered. None of these observations is an innovation yet. An observation must first be recognised as relevant. It has to be expressed in a way that enables others to understand it. It encounters competing interpretations, existing responsibilities and differing interests. A possible solution must be evaluated, developed, funded and tested. Finally, people, processes or technical systems must… Read More

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A strong innovation process identifies relevant insights, evaluates ideas critically and turns them into viable organisational innovation.

Innovation Process: Why Innovation Begins with Insight

Monika WolffNo Comments

An Innovation Process Is More Than a Collection of Good Ideas Creativity and innovation are often treated as interchangeable in everyday business practice. On closer examination, however, this equation is not particularly useful. In organisational research, creativity usually refers to the development of ideas that are both novel and potentially useful. Innovation goes further. It includes the development and implementation of those ideas. The fact that an idea is interesting or original does not yet make it an innovation. The OECD and Eurostat’s Oslo Manual also draws an explicit distinction between innovation and a mere idea or invention. A new or improved product must be made available to potential users,… Read More

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Leadership in Complexity | Why Direction Matters More

Monika WolffNo Comments

Leadership in Complexity: Why Direction Matters More Than Control Leadership has always been demanding. Yet many leaders are now experiencing a new degree of complexity. Markets are changing more rapidly. Teams are working remotely, in hybrid settings or across multiple locations. Technologies are developing at speed, while professional expertise is becoming increasingly specialised. At the same time, expectations around innovation, collaboration and the ability to manage change continue to rise. At the centre of all this is the leader. They carry responsibility, face expectations from both above and below, allocate limited resources and are expected to provide direction even when the situation is not yet clear to them either. Remarkably… Read More

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passing the baton from strategy to day-to-day reality. Why does organisational change fail despite motivated teams? Learn where change management breaks down in day-to-day implementation and what helps change stick.

Why Organisational Change Fails

Monika WolffNo Comments

Why Organisational Change Fails Even When Everyone Is Motivated Organisational change has become part of everyday business. New technologies are emerging more rapidly. Markets are shifting. Specialist knowledge is becoming increasingly complex. Teams are collaborating across disciplines and locations. At the same time, many organisations are facing demographic change, a growing shortage of skilled workers, and increasing pressure to innovate and adapt. Yet many change processes still fail. Not always dramatically. In fact, failure is often remarkably quiet. A new tool is introduced but barely used. Decisions are made but gradually lose their effect in day-to-day work. Strategies look convincing on presentation slides but create very little real movement within… Read More

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