The document discusses the future of work and organizations. It argues that organizations need to transition from traditional hierarchical structures to more networked structures that allow for greater information sharing and self-organization. Networks and distributed/decentralized models are better suited for responding to complexity and creating mutual value for all stakeholders. The key is giving every participant the tools and autonomy to think, act, react, and adapt based on their unique knowledge and expertise.

1. FUTURE OF WORK – by Philip @Sheldrake
Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International
www.philipsheldrake.com/2016/05/
workfront-and-the-future-of-work/
MAKING WORK
SUCK LESS

2. 8 STEPS TO
MAKING WORK
SUCK LESS

3. 8 STEPS TO
MAKING WORK
SUCK LESS
BS

4. WHY DOES MY
COMPANY SUCK?
A TOO COMMON QUESTION
Derived from a photo by Robbie Sproule, CC BY 2.0
https://www.flickr.com/photos/robbie1/2718841858

5. COMPANY
WORK&

6. CUT
PASTE&

7. COMPAIGNIE (n., French)
12th Century.
society, friendship, intimacy;
body of soldiers
http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=company
Public domain image https://pixabay.com/en/us-army-soldiers-army-men-waiting-379036/

8. THE ORG CHART
1855.
The New York & Erie
Railroad Diagram
Reference: https://www.fastcodesign.com/3026334/this-beautiful-19th-
century-org-chart-puts-your-companys-to-shame
Public domain image https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/
File:Organizational_diagram_of_the_New_York_and_Erie_Railroad,_1855.jpg

9. THE ORG CHART
1855.
The New York & Erie
Railroad Diagram check out
that symbol!
sweet ego!
Reference: https://www.fastcodesign.com/3026334/this-beautiful-19th-
century-org-chart-puts-your-companys-to-shame
Public domain image https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/
File:Organizational_diagram_of_the_New_York_and_Erie_Railroad,_1855.jpg

10. ORGANIZATION
A COORDINATED GROUP OF
PEOPLE WITH A PARTICULAR
PURPOSE.
DISORGANIZATION
TOO DIFFICULT TO GIVE ALL ONE
CAN GIVE AND TO DERIVE ALL
THE VALUE THERE IS TO DERIVE.
Public domain image https://commons.wikimedia.org/
wiki/File:Barn_raising_in_Lansing.jpg

11. IF YOUR COMPANY WAS
A COUNTRY, WOULD YOU
LIVE THERE?
http://simonterry.tumblr.com/post/80222651306/

12. around 1 in 8 are
engaged at work
not
engaged
actively
disengaged
www.gallup.com/poll/165269/worldwide-employees-engaged-work.aspx (2011-12)

13. “THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
WHAT WE DO AND WHAT WE
ARE CAPABLE OF DOING WOULD
SUFFICE TO SOLVE MOST OF
THE WORLD’S PROBLEMS”
Gandhi
Public domain image https://commons.wikimedia.org/
wiki/File:Mahatma_Gandhi_laughing.jpeg

14. ORGANIZATIONS ARE
RELATIONSHIPS.
They entail the constant
adaption of the way we
think and behave in order
to influence others to think
and behave differently in
support of our goals.
Singular value decomposition plot of al Qaeda members using
both demographic and relationship attributes. Skillikorn 2004.
http://research.cs.queensu.ca/home/skill/alqaeda.pdf

15. Attenzi – a social business story, Sheldrake, in association with Social Media Today
http://www.attenzi.com/
GOOD BUSINESS IS ABOUT COOPERATIVE AND
INTERDEPENDENT RELATIONSHIPS, ALWAYS
HAS BEEN, YET THE HUMANITY WAS LOST
WHEN ORGANIZATIONS SCALED WAY UP
DURING THE 20TH CENTURY.
WE WANT TO MAKE THOSE RELATIONSHIPS
MORE HUMAN AGAIN, BUT THE ANSWER
CAN’T BE TO SCALE IT ALL BACK DOWN.
WE HAVE TO SCALE SOMETHING ELSE UP.

16. COMPLEXITY
Cellular automata http://math.hws.edu/xJava/CA/ca_1024x768.png

17. COMPLEXITYnoun: a system in which there are multiple
interactions between many different components /
bridges the gap between the individual and the
collective / may lead to emergent behavior

18. COMPLEXITY
order leads
to chaos
chaos leads
to order

19. Engine – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Mercedes_V6_DTM_Rennmotor_1996.png
Traffic
Organizations
Com
plication
Com
plexity
✓
✓
✓
✓
Cars

20. “IN ALL THINGS OF NATURE
THERE IS SOMETHING OF THE
MARVELLOUS.
IF ONE WAY BE BETTER THAN
ANOTHER, THAT YOU MAY BE
SURE IS NATURE'S WAY.”
Aristotle
Public domain image https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
File:Aristotle_Altemps_Inv8575.jpg

21. the
customer
is king

22. it’s
all about
shareholder
value
the
customer
is king

23. our
people are
our greatest
asset
it’s
all about
shareholder
value
the
customer
is king

24. IN FACT
IT’S ALL IN THE
COMPLEX MIX

25. "THE PURPOSE OF BUSINESS
IS TO CREATE AND KEEP A
CUSTOMER.”
He was right at the time in offering
previously inward-looking firms a
more appropriate beacon.
Peter Drucker
Image by jeffmcneill, cc-by-sa 2.0, https://
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Drucker5789.jpg

26. HIS DICTUM IS, HOWEVER,
WRONG FOR OUR TIME.
It’s insufficient in sustainability terms –
concerned with the health and resilience
of living systems such as organizations,
society and the environment.
Image by Philip Sheldrake, cc-by-sa 2.0, https://
www.flickr.com/photos/philip_sheldrake/14533489335/
http://www.philipsheldrake.com/2015/04/what-exactly-
is-the-purpose-of-business-an-answer-post-drucker/

27. WHEN ONE STAKEHOLDER
GROUP IN AN ORGANIZATION
TAKES PERMANENT
PRIORITY OVER ANOTHER,
THAT’S NOT ORGANIZATION

28. WHEN ONE ALWAYS
LOSES A LITTLE WHEN
ANOTHER WINS A LITTLE,
ALL LOSE A LITTLE

29. BUSINESS EXISTS TO ESTABLISH AND
DRIVE MUTUAL VALUE CREATION
http://www.philipsheldrake.com/2015/04/what-exactly-
is-the-purpose-of-business-an-answer-post-drucker/

30. https://www.flickr.com/photos/philip_sheldrake/2642723527/
INFORMATION
FLOW
+ CODE =

31. “THE WINNERS WILL BE THE ONES
WHO DEVELOP A WORLD-CLASS
DIGITAL NERVOUS SYSTEM SO THAT
INFORMATION CAN EASILY FLOW
THROUGH THEIR COMPANIES FOR
MAXIMUM AND CONSTANT LEARNING.
… TO THINK, ACT, REACT, AND ADAPT.”
Bill Gates, 1999

32. NOW, THE WINNERS WILL EQUIP EACH
AND EVERY PARTICIPANT WITH THE
SAME KIND OF I.T. THAT USED TO BE THE
DOMAIN OF A CORPORATE FUNCTION.
FOR SENSE-MAKING.
FOR AUTONOMY.
FOR CONNECTION.
FOR ORGANIZING.
… TO THINK, ACT, REACT, AND ADAPT.
Image: wirearchy logo by Gaping Void’s Hugh McLeod.
See Jon Husband, http://wirearchy.com/what-is-wirearchy/
WIREARCHY IS A DYNAMIC TWO-WAY FLOW OF POWER AND AUTHORITY,
BASED ON KNOWLEDGE, TRUST, CREDIBILITY AND A FOCUS ON
RESULTS, ENABLED BY INTERCONNECTED PEOPLE AND TECHNOLOGY.

33. NOW, WE’RE LEARNING
FROM NATURE.
WE’RE ORGANIZING AS
NETWORKS.
WE’RE ORGANIZING FOR
RESPONSIVENESS.
WE’RE ORGANIZING FOR
MUTUAL VALUE.
Image: Dave Gray. Reproduced with permission. http://connectedco.com

34. WE’VE SEEN THIS PLAY OUT IN
OUR SOCIETIES.
NOW WE’RE MAPPING OUR
UNDERSTANDING OF COMPLEXITY
TO ORGANIZATION SO THAT OUR
ORGANIZATIONS MIGHT RESPOND
TO COMPLEXITY.
Y. Bar-Yam, Complexity rising: From human beings to human civilization, a complexity profile,
Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems (EOLSS UNESCO Publishers, Oxford, UK, 2002)
http://www.necsi.edu/projects/yaneer/Civilization.html

35. “JUST LIKE THEIR ALLIES IN AL QAEDA,
THIS NEW TALIBAN IS MORE NETWORK
THAN ARMY, MORE A COMMUNITY OF
INTEREST THAN A CORPORATE STRUCTURE.
… TO DEFEAT A NETWORKED ENEMY WE
HAD TO BECOME A NETWORK OURSELVES.”
Retired Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal
Public Domain, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanley_A._McChrystal#/
media/File:Defense.gov_News_Photo_030414-D-2987S-060.jpg
It takes a network, Foreign Policy,
https://foreignpolicy.com/2011/02/21/it-takes-a-network/

36. AN ORGANIZATION OF THE
PEOPLE, BY THE PEOPLE,
FOR THE PEOPLE.
Paraphrasing President Abraham Lincoln
It doesn’t matter if you agree or not,
just whether networks for mutual value
are more responsive, more sustainable,
more competitive than alternatives.
Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/
File:Abraham_Lincoln_O-77_matte_collodion_print.jpg

37. Image by Mark Warner, cc-by, https://www.flickr.com/
photos/senatormarkwarner/19588717540
‘SHARING’, LITE
DECENTRALIZED*
MONOPOLISTIC
COMMERCIALISING SURPLUS
EXTRACTIVE VALUE
BIGGEST THREAT =
SHARING, ORIG.
SHARING, ORIG.
*DISTRIBUTED
NATURAL
LIBERATING SURPLUS
MUTUAL VALUE
A DECENTRALIZED SYSTEM DECENTRALIZES LOCATION BUT NOT CONTROL.
A DISTRIBUTED SYSTEM ALSO DISTRIBUTES CONTROL.*

38. The Business of Influence, Sheldrake, Wiley, 2011
http://www.eulerpartners.com/influence-flows/
SIX INFLUENCE FLOWS
1
3
2 5
6
4
THE
ORGANIZATION STAKEHOLDERS THE
COMPETITION

39. THE SOCIAL BUSINESS
MUTUALITY STACK
MUTUAL UNDERSTANDING
www.philipsheldrake.com/2014/03/social-business-mutuality-stack/
understanding points of
view and reasons for
those points of view

40. THE SOCIAL BUSINESS
MUTUALITY STACK
MUTUAL UNDERSTANDING
MUTUAL INFLUENCE
www.philipsheldrake.com/2014/03/social-business-mutuality-stack/
mutual revision /
adaption of opinions
and behaviours

41. THE SOCIAL BUSINESS
MUTUALITY STACK
MUTUAL UNDERSTANDING
MUTUAL INFLUENCE
MUTUAL VALUE
www.philipsheldrake.com/2014/03/social-business-mutuality-stack/
recognizing the value
contributed and the
value derived

42. “THE MOST UNIVERSAL CHALLENGE
THAT WE FACE IS THE TRANSITION
FROM SEEING OUR HUMAN
INSTITUTIONS AS MACHINES TO SEEING
THEM AS EMBODIMENTS OF NATURE.”
“ORGANIZATIONS LEARN ONLY
THROUGH INDIVIDUALS WHO LEARN.”
Peter Senge
Image by Americans4Arts, cc-by 2.0, https://
www.flickr.com/photos/americans4arts/3644561380
References: https://www.fastcompany.com/36819/learning-
change and the Personal Mastery chapter of The Fifth Discipline

43. “They get their smarts from
below. … In these systems,
agents residing on one scale
start producing behavior that
lies one scale above them.”
“All new organisational forms,
no matter how radically new, are
combinations and permutations
of what was there before.”

44. DELIBERATE STRATEGY
EMERGENT STRATEGY
The dominant approach today.
Top team sets strategy and aims
to cascade down into operations.
Frequently an annual drumbeat.
Sensitizing the organization, and
developing an organizational fabric
with the agility to react appropriately, to
exploit opportunity and close down risk.
Deliberate and emergent, by design.
http://www.philipsheldrake.com/2014/07/deliberate-emergent-design/

45. “CULTIVATE A DEEP UNDERSTANDING OF
YOURSELF BY IDENTIFYING YOUR MOST
VALUABLE STRENGTHS AND MOST
DANGEROUS WEAKNESSES.
ARTICULATE HOW YOU LEARN AND WORK
WITH OTHERS AND WHAT YOUR MOST
DEEPLY HELD VALUES ARE.
DESCRIBE THE TYPE OF WORK
ENVIRONMENT WHERE YOU CAN MAKE
THE GREATEST CONTRIBUTION.”
Peter Drucker
Image by jeffmcneill, cc-by-sa 2.0, https://
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Drucker5789.jpg

46. SELF-ORGANIZATION
A process where some form of global order or coordination
arises out of the local interactions between the components
of an initially disordered system.
THE ORGANIZED-SELF
Equipped with an ‘organization agent’ – software representing
us in finding opportunities to create mutual value with others,
and helping to realise that value.

47. The quantified self, the quantified organization, and the organized self.
http://www.philipsheldrake.com/2015/02/the-quantified-self-the-
quantified-organization-and-the-organized-self/
SELF
autonomous and
interdependent
ORG
people organized to
common purpose
QUANTIFIED
data collection
and analyses
ORGANIZED
-SELF
QUANTIFIED
-ORG
QUANTIFIED
-SELF

48. SOCIOVEILLANCE SUR
SOUS
SOCIO
Apersonalandprivateservicemonitoringour
interactionswithoursocios.Acomponentof
organized-self.
Negotiatesdataexchangewithothers’
serviceaccordingtoourrespectiveprivacy
policiestoenrichourmutualunderstanding
withincomfortableboundaries.

49. SOCIOVEILLANCEWHAT IS SOCIAL
BUSINESS?

50. DO YOU HELP ALL THE INDIVIDUALS
ASSOCIATED WITH YOUR ORGANIZATION BUILD
WORTHWHILE RELATIONSHIPS WITH EACH
OTHER AND OTHERS, COALESCING BY NEED AND
DESIRE, KNOWLEDGE AND CAPABILITY AND
SHARED VALUES, TO CREATE SHARED VALUE
http://www.attenzi.com/seventy-two/
http://www.philipsheldrake.com/2013/09/3m-thinktank-conference-getting-social-business/
?

51. “THIS IS A CONNECTED WORLD … BUT THE
SHADOWS OF THE INDUSTRIAL AGE ARE
LONG AND RUN DEEP.”
“THE HEALING MESH OF SOCIAL BUSINESS
… CREATES THE OPPORTUNITY FOR A NEW
KIND OF SOCIAL FABRIC, WOVEN TOGETHER
OUT OF CONNECTED INTENTION. THAT KIND
OF CO-OPERATION CAN BE THE FABRIC FOR
AN EMERGENT CIVILIZATION.”
Anne McCrossan
Image by jeffmcneill, cc-by-sa 2.0, https://
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Drucker5789.jpg
Interviewed by Stowe Boyd: http://stoweboyd.com/post/74638842971/socialogy-interview-with-anne-mccrossan
Archived blog post: https://web.archive.org/web/20131027035037/http://www.visceralbusiness.com/blog/brand/social-business-social-fabric-and-the-healing-mesh/

52. THE HI:PROJECT
CHAMPIONS THE
HUMAN INTERFACE.
YOUR INTERFACE
FOR YOUR LIFE.
www.hi-project.org

53. WORK WILL SUCK LESS WHEN
> WE DEFINE ITS PURPOSE TOGETHER
> WE PURSUE ADAPTATION AS NORMAL
> WE NAVIGATE COMPLEXITY
> WE WORK IN NETWORKS
> WE CREATE MUTUAL VALUE