Making Sense of a Complex World

Date: On Demand

Duration: 5 Days

Course Objectives

This course aims to provide participants with a set of frames and tools to make sense of and to navigate the growing complexities of Industry 4.0 (and beyond). The topics are:
• Understanding the operating environment in macro terms, using lenses and concepts of 4IR, network society, post-industrialism, and late/advanced modernity.
• Using insights from complexity sciences to link issues in the operating environment with the work of policymakers.
• Drawing on sensemaking concepts to inform strategic risk analysis and mitigation.
• Using futures/foresight tools to complement traditional strategic planning approaches.

Learning Outcomes

At the end of the course, participants will be able to:
• Understand the present and emerging operating context using the framework of complexity in the public policy context.
• Understand and be able to apply a sensemaking framework based on Karl Weick and Dave Snowden’s work on organisational cognition.
• Apply futures thinking tools and methods (e.g. horizon scanning methods, scenario planning, etc.) in policy work.

Topics

Topics covered included:
A. The Big Picture
– The Fourth Industrial Revolution
– Alternative frameworks such as “network society”, “information society”, post-industrialism
– Smart City and Smart Nation, technocracy and the technologizing of society
B. Complexity
– Basic concepts of nonlinearity, adaptiveness, emergence, self-organisation
– Implications for bureaucratic organisations
– Wild Cards and Black Swans
C. Sense-making
– Organising for complexity
– Planning for failure
– Institutionalising dissent
– Detecting weak signals
D. Futures Thinking
– Contrast with conventional planning
– The basics of scenario planning
– Building resilience in your organization

Who Should Attend

Public Service Professionals

Prerequisites

At least a Bachelor’s degree

Course Convener

(Click their photos to view their short biographies)