A Morphological Field Analysis of the Creative, Innovation and Execution Process:

Giving Decision Support to a Confused Landscape?

Bruce Garvey and Dr Nasir Hussain

Innovation, Creativity & Leadership - Research and Practice, 11th June 2012, City University

Email: hussain@strategyforesight.org

What’s the Problem?

Creativity Innovation Execution

How does this on-going problem open up new research vistas?

Creativity

Innovation

Execution

Uncertainty Risk

Qualitative Hybrid Quantitative

The landscape of decision support and problem-structuring methods

Problem Structuring Methods are a family of methods that apply modelling approaches to address ‘wicked problems’ faced by senior executives, strategists and planners of organisations.

They seek to alleviate or improve situations characterised by high uncertainty, conflict and complexity.

Decision Support Modelling is application of scientific modelling methods for the study and management of complex systems

Involves the construction scenarios & futures projections to test strategies, policies, systems or organisational structures.

It’s better to be approximately right than precisely wrong…..

“One of the greatest mistakes that can be made when dealing with a mess is to carve off part of the mess, treat it as a problem and then solve it as a puzzle -- ignoring its links with other aspects of the mess.” Michael Pidd, Tools for Thinking

Analysing a confused landscape...

Domain Area of management Analytical category Type of analysis

Creativity Strategic Frameworks Qualitative

Innovation Tactical Tools, aids, devices Quantitative

Execution Operational Processes Hybrid

How many combinations are there?

The organisational context

Organisational responsibility

Organisational culture (Tharp)

Cultural dimensions (Hofstede)

Organisational structure

(Mintzberg)

Chairman / Board Control (hierarchy) Power distanceVertical & horizontal

centralisation

CEO / C-level Collaborate (clan) IndividualismLimited horizontal decentralisation

Cross-functional project team

Create (adhocracy)Masculinity /

FemininityHorizontal

centralisationFunctional

departmentsCompete (market)

Uncertainty avoidance

Limited vertical decentralisation

IndividualsLong-term orientation

Selected decentralisation

Decentralisation

Any

Linking the internal and contextual perspectives

DomainArea of

managementAnalytical category

Type of analysis

Creativity Strategic Frameworks Qualitative

Innovation Tactical Tools, aids, devices Quantitative

Execution Operational Processes Hybrid

Organisational responsibility

Organisational culture (Tharp)

Cultural dimensions (Hofstede)

Organisational structure

(Mintzberg)

Chairman / Board Control (hierarchy) Power distanceVertical & horizontal

centralisation

CEO / C-level Collaborate (clan) IndividualismLimited horizontal decentralisation

Cross-functional project team

Create (adhocracy)Masculinity /

FemininityHorizontal

centralisationFunctional

departmentsCompete (market)

Uncertainty avoidance

Limited vertical decentralisation

IndividualsLong-term orientation

Selected decentralisation

Decentralisation

Any

An example of an inference model

Implications for further research

Presented a two-stage research programme

Phase 1: Explore the variety of decision support methods within CIE domain

Phase 2: Research into creating an integrated model adaptable to practitioners from different CIE sectors

Take home messages

1. Analysed the vast landscape of decision support models

2. Highlighted the organisational context within which to use the most optimal mix of decision support models

3. Demonstrated a live example of how General Morphological Analysis can operate as an inference model

4. Outlined a research programme that will have benefits for practitioners

5. Further material available at www.strategyforesight.org