New tools for managing complexity Does your organization manage complexity by making things
more complicated? If so you are not alone. According to The Boston Consulting Group’s
fascinating Complexity Index business complexity has increased sixfold during the past sixty
years. And all the while organizational complicatedness— that is the number of
structures processes committees decision-making forums and systems— has increased by a
whopping factor of thirty-five. In their attempt to respond to the increasingly complex
performance requirements they face company leaders have created an organizational labyrinth
that makes it more and more difficult to improve productivity and to pursue innovation. It also
disengages and demotivates the workforce. Clearly it’s time for leaders to stop trying to
manage complexity with their traditional tools and instead better leverage employees'
intelligence. This book shows you how and explains the implications for designing and leading
organizations. The way to manage complexity the authors argue is neither with the hard
solutions of another era nor with the soft solutions— such as team building and feel-good
“ people initiatives”— that often follow in their wake. Based on social sciences
(notably economics game theory and organizational sociology) and The Boston Consulting
Group’s work with more than five hundred companies in more than forty countries and in various
industries authors Yves Morieux and Peter Tollman recommend six simple rules to manage
complexity without getting complicated. Showing why the rules work and how to put them into
practice Morieux and Tollman give managers a much-needed tool to reinvigorate people in the
face of seemingly endless complexity. Included are detailed examples from companies that have
achieved a multiplicative effect on performance by using them. It’s time to manage complexity
better. Employ these six simple rules to foster autonomy and cooperation and to effectively
handle business complexity. As a result you will improve productivity innovate more reengage
your workforce and seize opportunities to create competitive advantage.
