This the seventh in our series from Chaordic Commons describing a their process for creating synergic organizations. I recommend using their process with ORTEGRITY for maximum leverage. See: 1) Purpose 2) Principles 3) Participants 4) Organizational Concept 5) Constitution 6) Practices

The Chaordic Design Process

The ultimate success of a chaordic design process has as much to do with careful and effective project management as it does with an elegant design for a chaordic organization. A great number of things need to be achieved simultaneously, and each step depends on those that precede it. Many key elements are common sense; others are well known project management skills. A few are unique to the chaordic design process

What follows is a summary of some of what we have learned and how we have tried to structure our own approach. The requisite caveat is that our own experience is evolving rapidly and we are already experimenting with variations on these themes!

Project Phases

There is no absolutely right or wrong way to undertake a chaordic design process, but most organization design and development initiatives tend to go through four major phases:

Exploration

The first phase typically involves establishing a compelling vision of what might be possible, then organizing the leadership and resources to proceed. Common activities include:

• One or two sessions exploring the core chaordic concepts with a leadership or initiating group. We urge groups and organizations to take time to assess the relevance and “fit” of chaordic concepts and processes for their circumstances. Having key participants consider and endorse a major strategic change initiative is essential if the effort is to have a serious chance of success. Alternatively, we may discover in this phase that a more limited inquiry or application of the concepts is most appropriate.
  
  
• One or two sessions determining participants, developing resources and devising a strategy for working through the chaordic design process. One or more months of work are typically required to organize the resources and support a full-scale organization design effort will need. This includes the development of dedicated teams with responsibility for project management and staffing, outreach and communications, and organizational concept and design.

Design

The second phase involves systematically and rigorously refining the vision into a practical and powerful set of chartering agreements on which the chaordic organization or network can be based, and organizing the leadership and resources to proceed. Common activities include:

• A series of in-depth meetings to work through each of the six lenses of the chaordic design process. Some elements, such as Principles and Organizational Concept, often take more than a single meeting. This series of meeting may take a year, especially when dealing with large, complex organizations or industries. Each initiative is unique, however, and we work with its leadership team to develop a realistic timeframe given the objectives.
  
  
• Ongoing analytic and educational support for process participants. Issues invariably arise that require more detailed research or attention by a special team. Research on industry-specific matters, work on specific business issues, and mapping current and emerging “system dynamics” in a given field are examples. Legal analysis is sometimes required.

Launch

The third phase involves establishing the key organizational systems and processes, while ensuring that the agreed-upon Purpose and Principles of the new entity are irreversibly embedded in all critical elements of operation. Common activities include:

• Chartering and implementation. Our aim is to create dynamic, evolving organizations. Yet implementation of new organizational concepts, management styles or business models can take several months. In the case of existing organizations seeking to transform themselves, a careful strategy for the transition from one structure to another must be created. When a new organization is being formed, it may take some months for individuals and other institutions to elect to join and participate – or for work on capitalization (funding), strategy, planning, organizational culture, development of essential internal systems and other key elements of the organization to bear fruit.

Operation

The fourth, ongoing phase involves removing all remaining constraints to growth and self-organization. With the essential infrastructure in place, participants are free to explore and create new pathways to value. Governance, function and the costs of supporting the infrastructure become more and more highly distributed and robust.

Each phase has its own unique demands and goals, and builds on the work completed in the preceding stages. Although the phases are distinct, there is no discontinuity. The quality of the work done in the early stages has a disproportional impact on the ultimate success of the initiative.

Within each phase there are also milestones and shifts in emphasis. In the exploration phase there is a shift from developing a powerful story to using it to draw participants. In the design phase, the conceptual work of Purpose, Principles and Participants gives way to the practical questions of Organizational Concept, Constitution, and Practices, then shifts again to the relationship and business development issues of chartering a distinct legal entity. The launch phase may begin with the focus of participants on building common infrastructure and an initial set of high value products and services, then increasingly focus on the governance issues that will allow the new chaordic system to grow effectively and comfortably without reverting to centralized control mechanisms.

Of course, none of this proceeds in a linear way. It is prudent to weave all of these issues together as the process unfolds.

A Growing, Living Process

Unlike more linear organizational efforts, the phases of a chaordic design initiative have a pronounced growth dynamic to them. Within each phase, and throughout the process, you should expect and seek steady growth in:

• The number of individuals and institutions participating in the process, and the number taking leadership roles.
  
  
• The diversity of interests engaged.
  
  
• The range of potential activities being considered or undertaken.
  
  
• The clarity and precision with which the organization is defined and understood by participants.
  
  
• The complexity of the relationships among the participants.

These kinds of development enormously increase the likelihood of ultimate success. Growing too rapidly in one dimension can put the others at risk. The same is true for growing too slowly. The ideal rate of development cannot be determined before the fact – it’s ultimately a judgment call – and it may accelerate or slow over time. However, we keep a few simple observations in mind:

• Growth can occur geometrically. There may be 10 key participants in the exploratory phase, 100 in the design phase, 1,000 in the launch phase and 10,000 or more in the operating phase. Visa experienced double-digit, compounded growth for nearly thirty years.
  
  
• Don’t be too concerned about not being fully chaordic and inclusive in the beginning of the design process – as long as all participants understand that the goal is to become ever more fully chaordic and inclusive as the process evolves.
  
  
• Not everyone who enters the process will complete it. While continuity is essential, the process proceeds only with those who are committed to contributing and seeing it through. We tend to build milestones and breakpoints into the process to give participants a chance to reassess their commitment before moving forward. Participants only truly commit to taking the next step together.
  
  
• Stay mindful of and true to the principles and process, while skillfully refining your practice of the process. Model your actions on your ultimate goal as best you can. Knowing that no step will be perfect, avoid compromising essential principles. When tempted to do so, pause and look more deeply for a creative way forward.

A chaordic initiative will test the skills and creativity of its participants, and especially its leaders, but it will also lead to unexpectedly fruitful and gratifying results if one commits to the inquiry with integrity, openness, passion and right intention.

A Deepening Knowledge Base

Qualitative development is as important as quantitative growth. As the process unfolds, there should be steady growth in the depth to which people understand:

Key concepts

• Chaordic - The nature, structures and economics of this new class of organization.
  
  
• Leadership - The kind(s) of leadership of greatest value and in greatest demand within chaordic structures.
  
  
• Global context - The point of history in which we find ourselves, why new forms of organization are called for, and why they present such an enormous opportunity.
  
  
• Specific context - The underlying social purpose that participants seek to fulfill, that persists despite the need for institutional change, and in relation to which compelling opportunities are emerging.

The process

• The discipline it takes to conceive and create a truly new and effective organizational, community or market system.
  
  
• The financial and human resources needed to support and enable innovative initiatives.
  
  
• The rationales, roles, practices and key deliverables of the various phases.

The vision

• What is truly worth achieving
  
  
• What benefits may arise
  
  
• How each individual or institution can contribute

These items are equally important for those directly involved in the design process and those who have the authority or means to free the financial and human resources to pursue the vision. For all, the process will be an ongoing journey of discovery and learning. As it progresses and the number and diversity of participants grow, the potential for surprise and true innovation becomes enormous.

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