Photo by Humphrey Muleba on Unsplash
Viability precedes agility. Viability is the biological ability to survive and live successfully. As individuals we want that. As leaders we want to scale that into our complex, biological enterprises.
Right now, many are in survival mode.
To survive, be agile. To be agile, be viable.
To be viable, think and act biologically. It comes naturally. It challenges existing paradigms.
Viability of a living enterprise cares for:
The environment, connecting deeply with the larger biological system that enables life
Operations, the organisational ‘body’ exchanging value within the larger system it’s a part of
Management, the ‘brain’ of an enterprise allocating resources, priorities and controls to assure the ‘body’ exchanges value without harm to the larger biological system in which an enterprise operates.
Management is then reframed: Sentience. Spark. Systemic engagement of connected parts working together as a living (viable and healthy) whole.
Management for viability enables leadership to appear at all levels. The focus on the top dissolves.
Management for viability requires a capacity for systemic intervention. Systems thinking. Systems practice. Constantly assuring agility when little things change, survival when big things change and sustainability over many generations.
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