N body problem

Organisations are n body problems. Everyone’s behaviour influences everyone else’s behaviour.

Organisations as living systems

The tension of our times is that we want our organisations to behave as living systems but we only know how to treat them as machines.

Margaret J. Wheatley

Good team work in three phases

Two lads football teams playing against each other.

Everything they need to say to coordinate their collective action is in three phrases:

  • “Give him options” – support a team member who is being pressured by the other team.
  • “Pressure them” – when to act offensively.
  • “Unlucky” – recognises a team mate taking a risk and trying something even though it didn’t work.

But this only comes from training together lots.