adaptive leadership for collective impact...

AdaptiveLearningforCollectiveImpact

AdaptiveLearningforCollectiveImpactSeptember25,2016

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AdaptiveLearning:APivotalCompetenceforCollectiveImpactCraigWeberandChrisSoderquist

Communitiesaroundtheglobefaceanexpandingrangeoftough,interconnected,messyproblemssuchaspoverty,violence,obesity,mentalillness,policeandcommunitytensions,climatechange,education,andhealthinequity,justtonameafew.Theseproblems–andmanyotherslikethem–arewhatwerefertoasadaptivechallenges.Whatdowemeanbythat?

Allourdifficultiesfallsomewhereonaspectrum;atoneendofthisspectrumwefindroutineproblems,and,attheotherend,adaptivechallenges.Aroutineproblemisn’tconsideredroutinebecauseithappensregularly,butbecausewehavearoutinefordealingwithit–aprotocol,aprocess,orexpertonwhichwecandependforareliablefix.Aroutineproblemmaybeirksomeandexpensive,butatleastwe’reinfamiliarterritoryandknowwhattodoaboutit.

Whenwe’refacinganadaptivechallenge,ontheotherhand,we’reoffthefamiliartrailinunchartedterritorywheretherearenoprovenroutines,protocols,solutions,orexperts.Tosuccessfullynegotiateanadaptivechallengewemustworkandlearnwithotherstonavigatethealienterrain.Alltheproblemswefaceinlifefallsomewherebetweenthesetwodistinctpoles.

..it’smoreimportantthanevertorecognizethedistinctionbetweenroutineandadaptiveissuesbecausetheyeachrequireaprofoundlydifferent



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problemsolvingapproach.Foraroutineproblemabiasforactionisappropriate.Wehavearoutine,weknowwhattodo,soasNikesuggests,weshould“justdoit.”Butforanadaptivechallenge–wherethereisnoclearroutine,noprovenprocess,andnoreadyexpertwhocansavetheday–abiasforlearningisessential.Why?Tonavigateourwayoverunfamiliargroundwemustrollupourcognitivesleevesandworkwithotherstofigureoutthebestwayforward.Wemustorchestrate,inotherwords,aprocessofadaptivelearning.1

Communitiesmustorchestrateaprocessoflearningiftheyaretoeffectivelyengageandresolveadaptiveissues.Becausedifferentperspectivesmustbeshared,integrated,andrunthroughaforgeofrefinementtoimproveandapply,communitiesneedtoguideorsteer“messy”processeswithadiversesetofinterestgroups:localleaders,publicandacademicinstitutions,aswellasprivatesectororganizations.Afterstatingthatmanychallengesareadaptive,KaniaandKramerinCollectiveImpactmakethispoint:“Reformingpubliceducation,restoringwetlandenvironments,andimprovingcommunityhealtharealladaptiveproblems.Inthesecases,reachinganeffectivesolutionrequireslearningbythestakeholdersinvolvedintheproblem,whomustthenchangetheirownbehaviorinordertocreateasolution.”2Collectiveimpactisaprocessthathasbeendevelopedinresponsetoguidingcommunitiesandnetworksthroughsuch“messy”,adaptivelearningprocesses.Iffacilitatedwell,itappearstoorchestrateanagileprocessoflearning.Inmanycases,however,theprocessbogsdown,failingtomaintaintheinitialmomentumofitspassionateleaders,whoeventuallybecomedisillusionedand“dropoutof”theprocess.Manyeffortswaneorevendie.Why?Collectiveimpactrequiresnewmindsetsandskillstobeeffective.It’snotanout-of-the-box,just-add-peoplesolution.Wetendtobelievethatonceleadersknowtheymust“goengagestakeholders”and“generateacollectivevision”thateverythingwilljustworkout.Butexpertsoncollectiveimpactknowexhortationstogoanddo,althoughnecessary,areinsufficient.KaniaandKramerputitthisway:

Shiftingfromisolatedimpacttocollectiveimpactisnotmerelyamatterofencouragingmorecollaborationorpublic-privatepartnerships.Itrequiresasystemicapproachtosocialimpactthatfocusesontherelationshipsbetweenorganizationsandtheprogresstowardsharedobjectives.Anditrequiresthecreationofanewsetofnonprofitmanagementorganizationsthathavethe

1http://www.weberconsultinggroup.net/leaning-into-difference-the-key-to-solving-tough-problems/2Kania,J.&Kramer,M.,CollectiveImpact,SocialInnovationReview(2011)



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skillsandresourcestoassembleandcoordinatethespecificelementsnecessaryforcollectiveactiontosucceed.3

Runningacollectiveimpactprocesscanbelikenedtorunningacomplexplayinaprofessionalsport.Forexample,itiswastedefforttodescribeallthestepsinrunningthetriangleoffense(basketball)toplayerswhodon’thavedeepproficiencyindribbling,passingandshooting.Justliketherearefundamentalskillsrequiredtoruncomplexplaysinbasketball,collectiveimpactrequiresasetofadaptiveleadershipskills.Again,KaniaandKramer:

Nocollectiveimpacteffortcansurviveunlessthebackboneorganizationis[…ledbyanexecutive…]possessingstrongadaptiveleadershipskills;theabilitytomobilizepeoplewithoutimposingapredeterminedagendaortakingcreditforsuccess.Backboneorganizationsmustmaintainadelicatebalancebetweenthestrongleadershipneededtokeepallpartiestogetherandtheinvisible“behindthescenes”rolethatletstheotherstakeholdersowntheinitiative’ssuccess.4

TheauthorsoftheChannelingChangearticleindicatetheneedforadaptiveleadershipskills.Butwhataretheseskills?Howdoyouknowifthebackboneorganizationanditsleadershippossessthem?Andhowcanyoubuildasufficientamounttofacilitatethecollectiveimpactprocess?Thereare(atleast)threeessentialskillsofadaptiveleadership.Theseskillsare:systemsTHINKING,ConversationalCapacity,andImprovisationalLearning.Theyhelpyoufindtheleverageneededforfundamentalimprovement,byacceleratingaprocessoflearning,wherecommunitymembersengageinrigorousandbalancedconversationsabouthighlyemotionaltopics–thingstheycareabout.Inotherwords,adaptivelearningskillshelppeopleandcommunitieslearnfaster,smarter,andtogether.It’softenassumedthatpeopleandgroupsalreadypossesstheseskills,andthattheyjustneedtobeawakenedbythecollectiveimpactprocess.Butthey’renot.Andwithoutconsciouslybuildingandapplyingtheseskills–transformingtheleadershipculture5inthecommunityandnetworkoforganizations–thelikelihoodofachievingintendedresultswiththecollectiveimpactprocessisgreatlydiminished.Whataretheseskills?TheyareSystemsTHINKING,ConversationalCapacity,andasuiteofskillssimplynamedYestotheMess.

3Kania,J.&Kramer,M.,CollectiveImpact,SocialInnovationReview(2011)4Hanleybrownetal,ChannelingChange:MakingCollectiveImpactWork,StanfordSocialInnovationReview(2012)5McGuire,J.andRhodes,G.,TransformingYourLeadershipCulture,Jossey-Bass;1edition(March30,2009)



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1. SystemsTHINKINGTheskillofSystemsTHINKINGisessentialforidentifyinghighleverageplacestointervene.Withlimitedtimeandresources,ithelpscommunitiesidentifychangesthatprovokethemostprofoundandsustainableimprovements.Lowleverageoccurswhenyoufightthe“physics”ofthesystem,whenthemoreyoupushittochange,themoreitpushesback.Lowleverageoccurswhentoday’sproblemscomefromyesterday’ssolutions,whenyoufallvictimtounintendedconsequences.Lowleverageevenoccurswhenyoudoimproveperformance–buttheimprovementisanemicrelativetothe(wasted)Herculeanamountofeffortyouappliedtotheproblem.Youfindleveragewhenyoufundamentallyimprovethewaythesystembehaves,generatingtheoptimalbehavioryoudesire.ThishighleveragecompetencyisreferredtoassystemsTHINKING.Thinkingiscapitalizedbecausethistypeofsystemsthinkingemphasizeshowwethinkaboutsystemicissuesinsteadofadoptingtheoverlysimplistic(andmostlyunhelpful)perspectivethat“it’sallcomplexandconnected.”Atitscore,systemsTHINKINGisbasedonafoundationalprinciple:Behaviorisgeneratedbystructure.Howwe’ve“structured”ourresources,organizations,andcommunitiesisgeneratingthebehaviorswelikeandthosewedon’t.Ifwearetocreatethefuturewewant,we’llneedtounderstandhowwe’vestructuredthings…andhowwe’llhavetochangethattogetthebehaviorwewant.ThemindsetrequiredforsystemsTHINKINGisanunwaveringcommitmenttounderstandingthewholesetofrelationships(structure)drivingimportant“realworld”behaviors.Weassumewe’vebeenusingboundariesthataretoonarrowtounderstandtheproblem,focusingonourlittlepartofthesystem–oursilo(e.g.education,health,publicsafety,etc…)–asifit’sthemostimportant.Italsoassumeswe’venotbeenthinkinghardenoughabouthowtheworld“reallyworks”,byoverlookingtimedelays,viciouscycles(andotherfeedbackloopbehavior),andunintendedconsequences.TheskillsofsystemsTHINKINGincludearigorousframeworkfordefiningissuesandmappingoutyourassumptionsaboutcauseandeffect.You“picture”thesystemsoyoucan“see”it.Thisisabsolutelycriticalforfindingleverage.Intheprocessyouapplyaskilltohelpyoumovefromthetypicalnarrowperspectivetoan“upandout”perspective,whereyourboundariesofawarenessareexpandedtoseemoreclearly,toseebroaderandfartherintimeandspace.Youuse–whereappropriate–computersimulationtoolstotraceouttheimplicationsofassumptions…andimproveTHINKING.WhenyouapplytheskillsofsystemsTHINKING,youmovefrombeingareactive,“woeisme”victimofforcesoutsideyourcontroltohavingthewisdomandpotencytointerveneinwaysthatwillmakeaprofounddifference.



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2. ConversationalCapacity6Inourworldofmountingcomplexityandchange,buildingorganizationsandteamsthatworkwellunderpressureismoreimportantthanever.Butwhileit’seasytoputtogetherateamthatworkswhenfacingsimpleproblems,buildingateamthatperformswhenthingsgettoughremainsanelusiveandfrustratingtask.Thereason,accordingtoCraigWeber,isthattraditionalteambuildingoverlooksthemostimportantpieceofthepuzzle.Thatmissingpieceisconversationalcapacity—ateam’sabilitytohaveopen,balanced,learning-focuseddialogueaboutdifficultsubjects,inchallengingcircumstances,andacrosstoughboundaries.Agroupwithhighconversationalcapacitycanperformwell,remainingontrackevenwhendealingwiththeirmosttroublesomeissues.Agrouplackingthatcapacity,bycontrast,canseetheirperformancederailoveraminordifferenceofopinion.Inthissense,conversationalcapacityisn’tjustanotheraspectofeffectiveteamwork—itdefinesit.Ateamthatcannottalkaboutitsmostpressingissuesisn’treallyateamatall.It’sjustagroupofpeoplethatcan’tworktogethereffectivelywhenitcounts.ThisisacriticalcompetenceforasuccessfulCollectiveImpactprocessthatrequirespeoplecommunicateandcollaborateabouttoughissuesandacrosschallengingboundaries.Soundssimple,right?Allateamhastodoisboostitsconversationalcapacityandallwillbewell.Unfortunately,it’snotthateasy.Inthequesttobuildcapacitywefaceaformidableobstacle:humannature.Itturnsoutthatreliablyeffectiveteamsarehardtobuildbecauseprimalaspectsofournature,rootedinthepowerfulfight-flightresponse,actuallyworkagainstteamwork.Fortunately,there’shope.There’saprovendiscipline—averitableconversationalmartialart—thatallowspeopleandtheirteamstoremainopen,balanced,andlearning-focusedastheytackletheirmosttroublesomeissues.Armedwiththisdiscipline,communities,organizations,andteamscanrespondtotoughchallengeswithgreateragilityandskill,performingbrilliantlyincircumstancesthatincapacitatelessdisciplinedteams.

6Weber,Craig.ConversationalCapacity,McGraw-Hill,2013



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3. “YesToTheMess”(akaAgileLearning)Agilelearning–whichisoftenassociatedwithsoftwaredevelopment–canmosteasilybeunderstoodastheskillofimprovisation.TwokeyaspectsoftheimprovisationalmindsetareparticularlyusefulforCollectiveImpactwork:anaffirmativebias,anda“learnasyougo”approach.OurcolleagueFrankBarrett,authorofYesToTheMess,explainsthisbetterthananyone:Managersfrequentlyfindthemselvesinthemiddleofmessesnotoftheirownmaking,inovertheirheads,havingtotakeactioneventhoughthereisnoguaranteeofagoodoutcome,andrelyingonimperfectinformation.Jazzplayersfacethesameissues,butwhatmakesitpossibletoimprovise,toadjustandfalluponaworkingstrategyisanaffirmativemove,animplicit‘yes’thatallowsthemtomoveforwardeveninthemidstofuncertainty.Problemsolvingbyitselfwillnotgeneratenovelsolutions.What’sneededisanaffirmativebeliefthatasolutionexistsandthatsomethingpositivewillemerge.7

Theimprovisationalmindsetassumesthatnomatterhowmessy,howdifficult,orhowconfusingthecurrentpredicament,thereisalwaysacreativeandconstructivepathforward.Atitscore,theimprovisationalprocessstemsfromanaffirmativemindset.Butinadditiontotheaffirmativeorientation,anotheressentialskillofimprovisationisrapidexperimentationandembracingerrors,the“learnasyougo”approachtoperformance.ThisapproachreflectstheobservationofKurtLewin,whonotedthatthebestwaytolearnaboutanysystemistotryandchangeit.Ratherthansitbackandwaitforalltheinformationtocomeinbeforetakingactiontheyjumpintotheperformanceandlearnastheygo.

AnÜberCompetencyThesethreecompetenciescombinetoformanübercompetence,ameta-skillthatturbochargestheeffectivenessofaperson,team,organization,orcommunity.Withoutitagroupwillalmostalwaysunderperform–especiallywhenit’sfacinganadaptivechallenge.SystemsTHINKINGcanhelpagroupidentifythehighleverageactionsthatwillsparkthemostconstructivechange.ConversationalCapacityenablesagroupofsmartpeopletoworksmartbybalancingcandorandcourageandcuriosityandhumilityunderpressure.AgileLearninghelpspeopleworkinmoreopen,flexible,experimentalwaysinsituationswhererapidlearningisthekeytoprogress.Togetherthesecompetenciesempowerpeopleandgroupstocometogethertotackletheirmostpressingissues.

7Barrett,Frank.YestotheMess:SurprisingLeadershipLessonsfromJazz,HarvardBusinessPressBooks,2012



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Inthebeginningofthisarticle,wereferredtotheseskillsasanalogoustotheskillsneededtoplaymusic,orasport,ormanyothersimilarendeavors.Infact,theyaretheskillsneededtoexcelatsuchendeavors.WhatdistinguishedbasketballplayerslikeLarryBirdandMagicJohnsonfromtheirpeerswasn’ttheirskillsatdribbling,passingandshooting–itwastheirüberskillsofseeingthefullcourtandimagininghowthingswereplayingout,theirabilitytoselflesslypasstheballandtoworkwithallplayersontheteam,andtheirabilitytoturnabrokenplayintoabasket.Thesamehappensinmostothersports(e.g.football,soccer).Therearesimilarskillsinjazz–seeingallofthemusicasatableauandthepotentialitiesofitunfolding,tocollaborateinwaysthatpoolmultipleperspectives,andtoimproviseandtradeoffsoloingandsupporting.Helpingcollectiveimpactmeetitspotentialrequiresintegratingtheadaptiveleadershipskillsjustdescribed.Acquiringthismeta-skill,infact,willtransformacommunity’sleadershipculture.It’sourcontentionthatanyonestartingacollectiveimpactinitiativeshouldpayasmuchattentiontobuildingandapplyingtheseadaptiveleadershipskillsastheydoanyotherpartoftheprocess.Theyincreasethelikelihoodthey’llmaketheconstructivechangesthey’reseekingwhilecreatingamoreconnected,resilient,andlearning-focusedcommunityintheprocess.

CONTACTINFORMATION

ChrisSoderquistPontifexConsulting

POBox64Hanover,NH03755

[email protected]

CraigWeber

TheWeberConsultingGroup4484212thStreetWestLancasterCA93534

[email protected]

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